NEWS 8 THE WEEKEND NEOS KOSMOS | SATURDAY 9 DECEMBER 2017 La Trobe’s intentions over modern Greek in doubt Almost 12 months since the head of the Modern Greek Studies Program Dr Maria Herodotou announced her impending retirement, the position remains vacant and unadvertised, calling into question La Trobe University’s plans for the future of the program EUGENIA PAVLOPOULOU Sources at La Trobe University have revealed the Modern Greek Studies Program may once again be in a precarious position, similar to that of 2011 - a particularly worrying prospect given it is the only complete university-level degree program left in Victoria. With the academic year having drawn to a close, significantly adding to the unease is the unresolved matter of finding a replacement for the retiring head of the program, Dr Maria Herodotou. In October, head of the Department of Languages and Linguistics Professor James Walker told Neos Kosmos that the university had decided to employee a full-time staff member but were waiting on approval to start the recruitment process, which he said would be commencing in two to three weeks’ time. Some six weeks on however, and with little time left for a new employee responsible for the program to be appointed, sources who requested to remain anonymous told Neos Kosmos that the university had put a hold on the recruitment of ‘new positions’ and that their intention was more than likely for the position to become part-time. It is clear that the position of Dr Herodotou is not a new one, so the freeze should not apply in this case. In a recent meeting between Pro Vice-Chancellor (Arts, Social Sciences and Commerce) Professor Anthony McGrew and the board of the Greek Community of Melbourne, circulating rumours gained even more ground. The ViceChancellor appeared cautiously optimistic that Dr Herodotou’s position would eventually be advertised and said that he could not commit to a DIGITAL.NEOSKOSMOS.COM Exploring the early relations between the Greek Orthodox and the Syrian/ Lebanese Orthodox Communities in Melbourne La Trobe University library. particular time frame as there was uncertainty regarding university funding. Meanwhile considering the position is the only full-time role in the department since 2011 when La Trobe made cuts, and that in 2017 there were a total of 140 undergraduate and post-graduate students enrolled in Modern Greek, if the hours of the position are reduced, there is no denying it would have dire consequences. Already understaffed, denying the program the staffing required to ensure its progress would no doubt see the failure of its growth and continued success into the future. In order to find out once again what the university plans for the program and to clarify if the rumours are true we tried to speak to the people in the decision-making process. It is interesting to note that while staff had up until recently been willing to communicate directly with Neos Kosmos, when we attempted to make contact with Professor McGrew – who was preparing to travel abroad – and the university’s Deputy ViceChancellor and Professor of Higher Education, Professor Kerri-Lee Krause, who is one of the executives involved in decision-making, we were referred to the university’s media officers. They responded to our ques- tions as follows: “When Professor Tony McGrew last spoke to representatives of the Greek Community in October he made it clear that staffing decisions would not be made until January. That remains the case,” said La Trobe’s director of Media and Communications Tim Mitchell. “La Trobe University remains committed to teaching Modern Greek. There are currently 11 subjects offered here at La Trobe University. Modern Greek is offered in a minor in the BA. “We will recruit staff to teach students in 2018, using funds allocated for this purpose. There’s currently low interest in the modern Greek program. There are 17 EFTSL enrolments (EFSTL stands for effective full-time student load, a bit like full-time equivalent - FTE). “We’re committed to working with the community to find ways to help make that grow, but can only enrol those who apply.” While 17 EFTSL enrolments (which means 50 in reality) is certainly a small number, it does not give a complete picture of the total number of students participating in the program given that it does not include first-year student enrolments from La Trobe or that of students from other Melbourne universities choosing to take up the elec- Dr Maria Herodotou tive, which will be submitted in January. By failing to take such considerations into account in their response, it comes as little surprise that the university is choosing to present the program as being no longer economically viable – a fractured argument at present given that for some years now the Vasilogiannakopoulos bequest has donated approximately $1.3 million exclusively towards La Trobe’s Modern Greek Studies Program, capital that remain untouched in the university’s coffers. Despite being asked about whether these funds would be invested into filling Dr Herodotou’s position, and if not, what they planned to do with the money, they failed to respond. As for the cooperation be- tween La Trobe and the Greek community, we sincerely hope that this collaboration will become a feasible and meaningful one that goes beyond the meeting phase. However this will require transparency from all sides and the pursuit of a common goal. Until this is achieved - and we hope it will be soon - we will continue to ask for answers to the difficult questions and expect the return of Professor McGrew to Australia, who will hopefully be willing to shed more light on the university’s plans. Monash University and RMIT University also offer Modern Dr Trevor Batrouney OAM is a fourth-generation Australian Lebanese historian and sociologist who has written extensively on migration, settlement, and religious issues in australia. His greatgrandfather, George Batrouney, migrated to Melbourne in 1889. From those very first days in Australia, the Batrouney family has made a major contribution to the life of the Australian Lebanese community and the Antiochian Orthodox Church in Melbourne. Trevor’s ancestors were among the first to set the foundations of Orthodoxy in Melbourne, together with the trailblazers of the Greek Community. As part of a lecture that he’ll be presenting at the Greek Centre on Sunday, Dr Batrouney will outline a series of historical facts revealing the beginnings of Orthodoxy in Victoria focusing on two aims: the first contacts made by Orthodox seamen, traders, and visiting priests with the early settlements in Australia and tracing the early relationship and cooperation of Orthodox migrants of different national groups with each other; in particular, the Greeks and Lebanese (then known as Syrians). It was in fact the erection - both literally and spiritually - of The Holy Annunciation of Our Lady Greek Orthodox church (Evangelismos Tis Theotokou) and St Nicholas Syrian (later Antiochian) Orthodox church that marked the strong relationship between the two communities. The physical closeness of the two churches in Victoria Parade, East Melbourne led to relations becoming intertwined until the Lebanese decided to have their own priest and worship in their own language after the Second World War, yet the relationship between the two churches remains close through the common bond of Orthodoxy. The free lecture Exploring the early relations between the Greek Orthodox Community and the Syrian/Lebanese Orthodox Community in Melbourne will take place on Sunday 10 December at 3.00 pm at the Greek Centre (Level M, 168 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, VIC). Dr Trevor Batrouney has authored several books as well as numerous reports, articles, and chapters in books on Lebanese and other immigrant groups in Australia. Dr Batrouney has an extensive career in higher education as principal lecturer at the Hawthorn Institute of Education. He later held the positions of assistant director of the Bureau of Immigration, Multicultural and Population Research, and Research Manager at the Australian Institute of Family Studies as well as being an adjunct professor at RMIT University. He has been an invited lecturer at international conferences on Lebanese migration, migrant religions, and related issues. He is also a supervisor and mentor for graduate and doctoral students as well as researchers and writers on said topics. Translation service launched by Australia Post The service allows customers to easily have their personal documents translated into English Those who have migrated to Australia from Greece without a sound knowledge of English will be familiar with the challenge having documents translated from Greek to English can pose. But that is no longer the case. Australia Post has teamed up with LanguageLoop making it possible to walk into one of their re- tail outlets to submit personal documents for translation. Available at selected locations across the country, the documents are passed on to be translated accurately by a NAATI-certified translator. Available for over a hundred languages including Greek, the documents are translated to Australian gov- ernment standards and contain the translator’s official NAATI stamp. Documents accepted for translation include everything from birth, marriage and education certificates, baptismal, divorce and death records, to passports and ID cards. To find out more, visit languageloop.com.au